Down the Rabbit Hole: National Library of Scotland on Flickr
15/06/2011 § Leave a comment
I have slipped down yet another rabbit hole that I thought I would share with you. While looking through pictures of children with odd animals (Don’t ask me why I search for such things, I have no idea. But the reward is finding a picture of a girl with a wombat on a bicycle! Yes!), I happened upon a collection of images from the First World War maintained by the National Library of Scotland. Taken from the papers of Field Marshal Earl Haig (1861-1928), these images are wartime propaganda and infinitely interesting.
“These photographs provide us with an invaluable record of how the Government and Military wanted the war perceived. Official photographers were encouraged to record morale-boosting scenes of victory and comradeship. Despite the restrictions placed on them, official war photographers succeeded in giving the most comprehensive visual account of the war. It is important to remember that these images were propaganda; few that could depict the war in a disheartening or disconcerting way passed the censors. As a result the photograph taken was often posed. They were intended to reassure those at home and boost morale. They were printed in newspapers, and were intended to confirm that ‘Tommy’ was winning the war.” Via the National Library of Scotland
I won’t make you look at all of them, but if you’d like to there are more after the jump. To see even more, head over to the National Library of Scotland.
Lady cricket players
Soldiers…and their bunnies.
Quite Continental 
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